Oh man! Where do I begin?
*if you don't feel like reading it all ill give you a synopsis. I had a alcoholic guide, descended, continued to get sick, he called me a helicopter, it did a crazy landing in a potato field in the fog, he sold my seats, got me back, now I'm in the hospital. Fun times!
Ill skip the boring details of descending. It is pretty easy to sum of the few days of hiking down. It was beautiful of course. I got out of Gorek Shep and back around to the lower landscape that had actually color besides gray. We hiked all day long the first day making it to Periche after many hours. The next day we spent 9 until 6 hiking down to Namche. From there I took a scary helicopter ride out.
So here I am sitting in a hospital room thinking about what happened. Due to the length of time and amount of things that happened, and that I realized happened ill try to sum the whole thing up in points rather than a giant long story of every detail.
Let me start by insisting that I am fine! Truthfully I am healthy and get out tomorrow morning!!
I had reached my goal so lets get down quickly. Leaving Gorek Shep my gee me me over one pass that was not real. Instead if taking the path he scaled the side of the rock and dirt hill that slowly gave out beneath his feet. I followed once again trusting him, only later to find out again it wasn't the right way and he found it comical.
Although tough in the knees we hiked down and down to Periche. Here I met an awesome girl from England and we chatted most of the night. Just like the couple from holland, the Canadian, and killer, she noticed something was off about my guide.
By 8 pm my guide was a hammered mess. He was slurring, his eyes were glassed over, and he repeatedly made in appropriate comments. The guesthouse worker informed me that my guide had been continually drunk for days and would drink every time we reached a guesthouse. Oh wow now it makes sense! Now he was taking it too far however. He's comments went from "I love you" to "I want to make babies with you " to a incoherent string of comments about how important he is, how the world needs to know about his route, and life and what is our life at a low altitude. At least this is what I could make of it?
Needless to say Mary and I walked to our rooms together, locked the door, and slept safe away from him.
The next morning I found out that, even though I had asked to be in cheap rooms he had ignored that wish and had been booking me the most expensive ones, ones that had electricity and a toilet in the room on two occasion. Seems silly but it actually takes the price up from 100 rupees to 1000 rupees. I confronted him but ll he did was blow me off and say stop talking. Ugh he was making me mad.
Still glazed and drunk more comments came out of his mouth insulting Mary and his wife at home. Most truly didn't make sense.
We walked all day and I kept my distance. Every time I was close I could smell the alcohol roll off him. Once we caught up to the Chinese couple even one of them noticed it. He didn't appear to be sobering up but getting worse along the way. My throat got worse, along with my lip, and my knees were killing.
By 5 pm when we were nearing Namache I could barely swallow by this point, my stomach still killed from being sick from days earlier, my lip throbbing, and now my knees could take it no longer. Coming down into the valley of Namache I was hobbling holding tightly into my walking stick. This was painful! Oh no!
Into the hotel I quickly settled down to relax and rest.
The next morning brought a huge problem! My guide called for me to pay the bill me announce o owed 3500 rupees. No way!!! I had checked the room price and figured I owed 1280. How had it gone up so much?!?! I went to the worker directly to check the bill. It was 1289 rupees just like I thought. I turned to my guide and he began to mumble stuff about how would he know the cost, this isn't his mothers house, I don't know, 3500, stop talking, shhhh. These things all came out of his moth not making a single word of sense.
It clicked. My guide is a drunken mess, who ripped me off, talked to me in appropriately, was not safe, and who was using my money to fuel is alcoholism.
Great why me!
After paying the lady and attempting to talk to him I gave up hope. Grabbing my stuff I wanted to get out as quickly as possible and make my final day of hiking to get my flight out.
Twenty steps out the door I knew this was not possible. My knees screamed at every step and my throat was so dry and swollen I could barely swallow. My body was dehydrated from the stomach problems and non of this had been taken care of yet because the "health post and doctor" which my guide had continually promised me at each stop was as real as Santa Claus!
I told him I couldn't go and he pushed for a helicopter to come get me. I agreed. I had done it and reached my goal and come back down. Now it was time I took care of myself. I sat on a rock and waited while he was supposed to call the trekking agency.
He stumbled back over with another lady and they led me into another hotel. Here I waited. Finally the lady asked me for my insurance. Well I don't have that, my guide does. I look to him and he stares at me. "Oh I left it at home," He said unapologetically. What do you mean you left it at home?!? Isn't this one of the reasons I got a guide?!?
Words don't explain how I am feeling at this point. Luckily the clouds went heavy and cell service was working. My wonderful mother was able to dig up the info and I gave it to the lady. I lost count at how many strikes this guide has.
While I waited for the arrangements I had a nice time. The ladies were full on Sherpas and they gave me some local foods to eat. A monk came to bless the place and I watched an elderly lady grumble asleep in the corner.
We headed up to the helicopter landing pad. A bunch of people came. A little confused why I didn't think much of it. Waiting, waiting, and waiting. The fog began to settle in and then a light rain. No way this thing is coming we will probably have to wait until tomorrow.
Then we heard it, whoop whoop whoop of the blades. Where was it? By this point we could barely see ten feet in front. It sounded so close! Everyone went running and ducking Di cover. Oh no what is this thing crashed? It was so loud! It missed the landing pad and soared on a little further.
Then it came closer again. Where was it. Now it sounded like it was below us. It was hovering in the village. The blades slowed and we could barely see below. The clouds cleared a little and in the center, in a potato field, and near the cliff edge, the helicopter had chosen to land. Oh my god! What just happened.
The pilot was from Australia and the locals all considered him crazy and a rough flyer. We stepped inside for some tea and I had concluded we wouldn't fly until the next day. To my amazement he goggled down the tea and proclaimed our flight must go on.
Nervously I hobbled through the potato field. Before getting on the helicopter the locals said some prayers and wrapped good luck scarves around my neck. I'm going to die. Seriously I'm going to die! How is this guy going to fly through these mountains. It's dangerous enough in good weather when the mountains are visible.
I got in and to other people and luggage were stuffed in. Who are these people? Who cares! I'm too scared to think.
The next hour was terrifying. Flying straight off the cliff and into the white abyss I was on my way. Somehow the pilot managed to navigate through the white mist and eventually out of the mountains where visible appeared again. I'm not exaggerating when I say you could barely see as mountains and cliff would appear out of no where. The local on the plane gripped my arm the entire time.
Arriving on the ground I was moved into an ambulance and transported to the hospital as a precaution.
Here I am! I'm on my second night and being treated with medications for my knees, stomach, loss of water, lip, and infected throat. This was mainly all a precaution and I assure everyone I am fine, alive, and kicking. Ill be outta here first thing in the morning.
Since being here I have learned quite a few things about my guide.
*when I was sick in Deboche he went through my things and took pictures of me while I sleeping
*he was drunk way more than I thought
*he ripped me off at many tea houses
*he never called the trekking agency to arrange my flight. He did it himself to make money. That is why he pushed it on me so much.
*he sold the two seats in my flight to locals to make money.
*he had lost his job with neither company
And now he was missing in action. He must have figured out that I wasn't dumb and that he would be in trouble when he got back. He never contacted the agency and by the time I had found a way to get to them by phone they had been searching guesthouses and hospitals for me. They tried to get ahold of him to get the money he owed me and my things from him but his phone has been disconnected.
Needless to say my trip to Everest base camp and Kalapathar was and is continuing to be an epic adventure.
***ill add all the pictures tomorrow!